17 Small Powerful Habits for an Amazing New Year

byTessonDecember 29, 2013

Most of us fail to change a habit because we try to do too much too soon. We want to lose 10 pounds in a week. We want to run a mile the first time we lace up our shoes. We want to declutter our home in one hour.

Life doesn’t work that way. I believe that all real change is slow. The key is to stay in the present. When we become frustrated and impatient remember there is only now. Breathe and focus.

When we fail to do something, begin again. Take a simple, single step and proceed.

Don’t try to change too much at once. Take one of the small but powerful habit below and take an entire month to incorporate it into your life. Then move to the next.

One small change at a time, you’ll make it a powerful year.
1. Get up 15 minutes earlier each day. Spend this extra time in silence. Set an intention. Decide how you want to spend the next 24 hours. Small penguin steps create lasting change.

2. Forgive someone. Before you fall asleep, review your day. Let go of any bitterness or resentment you have. This will create an incredible peace and calm that will touch your soul.

3. Be brave. Choose to do one thing that scares you every day. Begin an exciting project. Tell someone you love them. Give someone a compliment. Introduce yourself to someone that you want to meet. Move from fear to freedom.

4. Spend time alone. Be gentle and kind to yourself. Meet your own needs. Celebrate who you are and who you are becoming.

5. Learn to pause. Take mini breaks throughout your day. Get away from your computer. Take a five minute time out in between your various tasks.

7. Have fun. Find one fun thing to do every day. Take time to giggle and laugh. When you lighten up, you brighten up.

8. Accept yourself. Be proud of who you are. You are more than your weight. You are more than your flaws. You are enough. As Buddha so wisely said,“You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.”

10. Learn to deal. Everyone experiences challenges and tragedies. Use effective coping strategies. Don’t numb yourself to life’s pain. Keep it simple. When life is difficult, take a time out.

11. Choose to be grateful for what you have. Gratitude increases abundance. It makes you feel like you’re on top of the world.

12. Look for the good. Notice what goes right in your world. Notice what you get right. What you focus on expands.

13. Be open to different. Spend time with different and unusual people. Expand your knowledge. Be willing to see things from a different standpoint.

14. Accept others. Release judgment. Give everyone a break. Allow people to be exactly as they are. Always bring your focus back to yourself.

15. Be a positive storyteller. If you dwell in the negative, train yourself to see the bright side. Feed yourself positive stories about your future. Create stories about your beautiful self, your abundance and the love you have for yourself and life.

16. Do what you love to do. Do you love to paint or dance? Make room for it in your life. Do you like to sing or run? Schedule time for the activities you enjoy. You are in charge of how you spend the hours in your day. Do what you love.

17. Smile more. Practice smiling throughout the day. When you smile, you shine. People notice. You feel better. Try it!

Habits change with small consistent steps. Learn to be gentle with yourself. Celebrate small successes. Keep moving forward no matter what. I believe in you!Interested in joining The Bold & Courageous Mastermind Inner Circle? Get support and guidance and have fun! I just added two new bonuses for anyone who signs up before 12 pm EST on December 31st! A one-on-one coaching session + a FREE bonus month! Let 's do the impossible in 2014! Join today!

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Great list, Tess. I agree with you and Sandra – real change starts with baby steps that over time grows into powerful habits.
If I was to add anything it would be to walk proudly. Research has shown that a powerful posture actually affects the biochemistry of our body and makes us feel happier. Amy Cuddy has a great TED talk on this: http://www.ted.com/talks/amy_cuddy_your_body_language_shapes_who_you_are.html
Happy new year, guys! 🙂

Fun, fun, fun Tess. So many people forget to have a little fun and laughter in their day and we all know that laughter is a wonderful cure for what ails us. Love this list. And I’m wishing you a fun filled 2014 with blessings galore.

Wonderful post Tess! It’s so true about trying to take on too much all at once, rather than honoring small steps to success. I think when we just take it a bit at a time, we are actually loving ourselves through the process of change. When we try to do it all at once, it has disaster written all over it and then we can use it as an excuse to get down on ourselves. Taking a month to make the change is empowering.

Great points and I look forward to incorporating these gently into my 2014!!

TessDecember 30, 2013, 11:25 am

Good point, Karen! We are actually loving ourselves through the change when we take small steps. That’s a new thought for me and it makes so much sense! Happy 2014!

Hi Tess, I wish you a Happy New Year and thanks for those great tips – I love all of those 17 tips and for 2014 I decided to stress a little bit less, to have more fun and to spend more time doing what I really love to do – thanks for those great reminders.